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Is White Bread Really Unhealthy?

Is white bread healthy?

Whole grain products ensure that the blood sugar level remains more or less constant at one level over a longer period of time. Which, among other things, makes us feel full and satisfied. In addition, wholemeal flour still contains most of the dietary fiber and vitamins.

  • On the other hand, the white flour loses almost all of its nutrients during processing. Therefore, white bread spikes insulin levels very quickly and then drops them just as quickly.
  • This in turn causes renewed hunger pangs. For this reason, the so-called wheat flour type 405, or the baked goods produced from it, is also often demonized as a classic fattening agent.
  • In addition, scientists assume that the constant massive fluctuations in blood sugar levels at least promote various diseases such as diabetes or heart disease.
  • The mini-study from Israel is causing a stir because it seems to refute this finding, which was previously considered to be reliable. In the two test groups, the blood levels of the group that had eaten mostly white bread did not increase. On the contrary, the blood glucose levels of both groups did not differ significantly during the study.
  • However, the conclusion that products made from flour are not harmful would be short-sighted. It is also conceivable, for example, that the test persons had always eaten very healthily beforehand and that the organism was therefore able to absorb the very short period of time of the culinary sin.
  • But at least the nutrition study proves that we can occasionally allow ourselves one or the other not-so-healthy meal without falling dead from the chair. A very comforting realization.

White bread: New nutritional study with surprising results

Before all opponents of wholesome nutrition jump out of their shirts with joy at the preliminary results of the new nutrition study, they should pause for a moment. First of all, you should take a look at a few facts that at least put the results of the study, which were published in the journal “Cell metabolism” into perspective.

  • With the nutritional study, scientists from the Israeli Weizmann Institute wanted to find out whether white bread deserved its bad reputation and is really that unhealthy.
  • For this purpose, a total of 20 subjects were divided into two test groups of equal size. This in turn is the first critical point of the study. The number of test subjects is simply too small for a nutrition study. In order to get really meaningful results, several thousand subjects usually take part in such studies.
  • During the nutritional experiment, all subjects had to cover at least a quarter of their daily calorie requirement with bread. One group of participants received freshly baked sourdough wholemeal bread every day. The second group, on the other hand, had to be content with industrially produced white bread in a plastic bag.
  • The second major criticism concerns the length of the study. Since a large number of factors are included in investigations, such studies are usually carried out over several years, sometimes as long-term studies over decades. By comparison, the Israeli research team’s study took a tiny fraction of the time. The duration of the study, including a two-week break, was four weeks.
  • In the first week of the diet study, one group ate only whole grain bread, while the other group ate only white bread. A two-week break was then taken and then changed. The group that had previously eaten wholemeal bread now ate white bread for a week and vice versa.
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Written by John Myers

Professional Chef with 25 years of industry experience at the highest levels. Restaurant owner. Beverage Director with experience creating world-class nationally recognized cocktail programs. Food writer with a distinctive Chef-driven voice and point of view.

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